For the first time in its nine-year history, Fredericton’s Cultural Expressions Festival was held indoors due to heavy rainfall Saturday morning.
The late change in venue didn’t seem to hamper the event’s ability to draw a crowd, however.
The event, which sees nearly 20 cultural groups take part in singing, dancing and more each year, is usually held in Officers’ Square.
This time, however, the Capital Exhibit Centre was decked out to ensure the show could still go on despite the less than desirable weather.
Friday night’s kickoff took place at the downtown landmark despite some light rain.
While things started slow, Blom said, the area was nearly full two hours into the celebration.
“People have just been streaming in 20, 30, 40 at a time,” Blom said.
In observance of Canada 150, organizers made another change to this year’s event — one that was planned much further in advance, and didn’t rely on weather conditions.
Annie Gbotoe, originally from Africa, takes part in the festival each year, setting up a table featuring African clothing.
She says her excitement for the festival isn’t only because the event offers her a chance to showcase her culture to others, but also because she gets to experience her fellow Fredericton neighbours’ different backgrounds as well.
“I love the festival because you see a whole lot of performances from different culture groups,” she said. “It’s so amazing to see immigrants come together in New Brunswick to celebrate every year.”
Organizers say they hope to make next year’s event even bigger to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the festival.
- Canadian man dies during Texas Ironman event. His widow wants answers as to why
- ‘Shock and disbelief’ after Manitoba school trustee’s Indigenous comments
- Several baby products have been recalled by Health Canada. Here’s the list
- ‘Sciatica was gone’: hospital performs robot-assisted spinal surgery in Canadian first
Comments